Nerds That Geek Game Review: ‘Sam and Max Hit the Road’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

​I think it’s safe to assume that fans everywhere of just about everything are always hoping to find the perfect adaptation of their favorite stories, simply due to the fact that they want some kind of visual medium to do their imagination and the story justice. And while we often believe that film is the place for that happen since computer generated effects can create wonders, I’m of the firm belief that sometimes the only way to properly do a story justice, is to have it adapted into a video game.
 
Because in a game, there truly are no limits. No sets to build, no green screens to create, just the imaginary world in question and all the wonders you could ever ask for and quite frankly, some of the games I’ve seen over the years back this personal theory up because there are breathtaking moments and events that happen in the video game world that simply could never be replicated on the silver screen. But, sometimes, to get a quality adaptation, the creators of the game don’t need to think big, they just have to create the world in question and let the wonder of it take on a life of its own and one such game that meets that criteria was the 1993 LucasArts release, Sam and Max Hit the Road.
 
Now this particular game, was based off of a comic series by Steve Purcell and it introduced a whole new audience to the wonder of a talking dog named Sam and a violent bunny named Max and this unusual and delightful duo just so happen to be a pair of freelance police officers who are tasked in the game to help solve an important case involving a missing Bigfoot and their hunt for this missing monster will take them all across America, to various tourist trips across the land as they try to discover who would be wicked enough to kidnap a majestic Bigfoot.
 
If that seems like quite the wild plot, well, you’d be right, but that storyline is merely the beginning of one the wildest and off the wall computer adventures that I’ve ever had the blessing to play because really, what makes Sam and Max so amazing, is the sheer fact that it’s a magnificent and silly comedy tale. One filled to the brim with goofy one liners and hilarious moments and all of it stems from that unique plot and really, this is quite the refreshing game to play when all is said and done because of how original this game turned out to be. There is simply nothing like it on the market and its uniqueness helps draw you into the game.
 
But more importantly, and this goes back to my original point, it really is Steve Purcell’s comic come to life. Everything about this wild and hilarious world just works and it truly feels like you’re a part of this incredible place and you’re compelled to see this one to the end not only because the plot ends up being quite engrossing, but also because you want to see what other wonders await you in this world as well and really, this is a game that I still look upon fondly after all these years, and play when I can. Because it is still available online and if you haven’t played this one yet, I definitely encourage to seek it out simply due to the fact that this one is something special and something that the gaming community has never been able to recreate.  

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